Printing of visually observable data on still reflection prints is known. For example, it is well known to optically expose time and date data on photographic film in a camera which is then reproduced during the photographic printing process in human readable form on the print. Typically, this optically reproduced data appears within the image area on the print. A disadvantage of this arrangement is that it obscures the image area and interferes with pleasurable viewing of the print. Moreover, it is limited to a small amount of data, such as time and date.
It is also known to imprint data, including sound-related data, on a still image reflection print in the form of machine readable code such as a bar code which is observable to the human eye but requires an electronic sensor to read and decode the data. An example of such an arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,313,235. A disadvantage of such an arrangement is that the bar code obscures the image if printed upon the front, and also offers a limited amount of data that is not conducive to imprinting sound information that was taken during the picture taking event or for the recording of historical annotations while viewing the print. In the '235 patent, the imprinted data constitutes essentially a memory address pointing to an address location in a remote memory device where the actual sound data is stored. The actual sound data is not physically tied to the print. Since the sound information is stored separately from the print, the sound information can become disassociated from the print and lost.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,905,029 is an example of the use of magnetic recording strips on photographic prints for storage of sound information directly on the print. While offering the advantage of keeping the sound information physically associated with the print, it also has certain disadvantages. It provides a limited storage space and uses up available image space when placed on the front of the print. Moving the magnetic strip to the back of the print reduces accessibility and makes it awkward to reproduce the sound while viewing the print. It requires a magnetic reader head employing relative motion between the head and magnetic strip for signal reproduction. Critical alignment between the read head and data track, as well as maintaining intimate contact between the head and magnetic strip are important considerations that make magnetic signal reproduction an unattractive option for sound reproduction from still image prints. Additionally, magnetic recording media has a limited lifespan that includes inherent loss of the magnetically recorded data over time.
Commonly owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/931,575 to Socia et. al. discloses a method of storing data on a still image reflection print including optically imprinting the data on the surface of the image print as a two-dimensional data array which is invisible to the human eye under normal viewing conditions. It also describes a hand-held data reader device and a manually rolled data reader, both with capabilities of reading the invisible encoded data. These devices include an optical sensor responsive to the invisible information, a data decoding unit for decoding the received signal into an analog sound signal corresponding to the sound represented by the invisible information, and a sound transducer for playing the analog sound while the print is being viewed.
Socia et. al., while addressing limitations of U.S. Pat. No. 5,313,235 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,905,029, fail to account for situations wherein both visible and invisible information would want to be recorded on a print, label or recordable media. This information could include an index number, address or some other visible annotation which the viewer needs to see. In the case of a multimedia presentation, it could be something as simple as a visible message in the form of printed text telling the viewer to scan the print, label or media for additional information which has been recorded in the form of sound. It also fails to address situations wherein the same types of information, both visible and invisible, would reside specifically upon the front or back of a print, label or recordable media. It also does not address situations wherein both visible and invisible information would want to be imprinted and used within a given application. As an example, a baseball card could include the players statistics visibly stored for visual reading, and also include the statistics invisibly stored for voice playback. Since both these modes represent useable data, it would be beneficial to be able to electronically read both forms. And, since it would also be beneficial for a user to be able to place such variations of information upon a surface, there exists a need for a device with the capabilities herein described.
In addition, Socia et. al. fail to address limitations in the use of hand-held devices for the reading and playback of encoded information. The disclosed devices, which are both extremely sensitive to the motions of the individual user, require codes which incorporate large amounts of correction, thus limiting the amount of sound which can be recorded in a given area.
Consequently, there is a need for a device which provides capabilities for both the encoding and playback of sound recorded in either or both visible and invisible form for overcoming the above-described drawbacks.